Creativity Gift

The Encouraging Leader

Highlights

· Sees the potential in people that others may overlook

· Supports people through close inter-personal relationships

· Is risk-avoidant and may be resistant to change

· Characterized typically by a quiet, reflective and gentle spirit

· May struggle with internalized stress as they emote with and help carry the burdens of others

Report

Barnabus was a great encourager – when no one else trusted that Saul (Paul) had truly converted to follow Jesus Christ, and had been called by Christ to be an Apostle, it was Barnabus who introduced Paul to the leaders of the Jerusalem church. Barnabus then became the primary supporter and encourager to Paul in his new ministry, traveling and suffering with him. In Acts 15:36 and following, we find that Paul had become disenchanted with a man by the name of Mark because Mark had abandoned them on an earlier mission trip. But Barnabus, an ever faithful encourager of the underdog, sought to include Mark on their up-coming mission journey. Paul and Barnabus disagreed, resulting in Barnabus selecting Mark to be his new partner and together they set off on their own missionary journey.

It is in the nature of the Encouraging Leader to see potential in people, and to seek to nurture that potential until it becomes a reality. Where other leadership types may avoid certain people, deeming them either unfit of ill-prepared to serve on the ministry team, the Encouraging Leader demonstrates the same grace that God extends to each and every one of us who have failed…for we all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. It is only by God’s grace and nurture within our lives that any one of us is deemed by God to be “fit” for ministry. It is in God’s nature to not give up on his people, and so the Encouraging Leader reflects this aspect of God’s divine character.

Encouraging Leaders have the ability to know when a quiet word can spur people on, when to challenge and when to support, when to coach and when to give space. Occasionally they may irritate people by appearing less "involved" than other leadership styles - sometimes people want more than just encouragement. However, Encouraging Leaders excel at supporting individuals through close interpersonal relationships. Encouraging Leaders influence others through inter-personal one-on-one relationships. Relational depth is more valuable to an Encouraging Leader than relationships with many people. Encouraging Leaders are good listeners. They are able to perceive, interpret and emote with the thoughts and feelings of others. For this reason, Encouraging Leaders make excellent personal consultants, counselors, hospital Chaplains, visitation pastors and spiritual mentors.

Encouraging Leaders can make excellent small group leaders, as well as recovery ministry leaders. Encouraging Leaders are not at all task-focused and should never be given the responsibility to lead a project to completion. Their focus is almost entirely upon the people they serve. If asked to lead projects or task-oriented teams, the Encouraging Leader is likely to become very anxious and stressed over the many details. Their team meetings are likely to be full of discussion with very little missional ministry being accomplished. The Encouraging Leader will desire to know the thoughts, feelings and perspectives of each team member. The Encouraging Leader is not at all entrepreneurial and so is typically risk avoidant. When considering change to the present ministry systems, they may perceive the risks involved as potentially harmful to the people they value so deeply. Encouraging Leaders are above all peacemakers who seek to minimize or eliminate division, strife, and stress within the lives of the people they care about. They will likely feel that change, if it must occur, should be accomplished very slowly and patiently. This perspective regarding organizational change within the ministry may result in relational stress between the Encouraging Leader and other leader types such as Pioneers and Strategic Leaders who value positive change and realize that synergy and momentum are often crucial allies in any serious project. But this relational stress can also be healthy in that the Encouraging Leader will provide a check-and-balance to the highly task oriented leaders who might otherwise steamroll over people in their zeal to accomplish their missional objectives.

By nature, most Encouraging Leaders are quiet, reflective and gentle-spirited. Encouraging Leaders are deep thinkers and deep feelers. Their outward reserved appearance commonly conceals the depth of their emotional and thought life. While a Pioneering or Strategic Leader excels at analyzing the details and tasks of a project, the Encouraging Leader excels as analyzing people. Encouraging Leaders are able to quickly identify the strengths and weakness of an individual, and will tend to focus upon nurturing and supporting the individual’s areas of personal struggle. Yet while Encouraging Leaders are able to “size-up” people effectively, the Encouraging Leader is not so easy to understand. Encouraging Leaders are complex individuals who may appear to others to hold little value for “getting work done”. If the Encouraging Leader is not properly understood and utilized accordingly within an organization, they may be labeled by others as lazy or lacking in commitment. In fact, the Encouraging Leader is far from lazy and will work tirelessly nurturing and supporting the emotional and spiritual needs of others. They may perceive the many tasks associated with ministry as actually hindering “true” ministry to people and will personally seek to distance themselves from such activities that will limit their interactions with others. However, if it becomes evident to the Encouraging Leader that the only way they will be able to earn the trust and respect of a person is by “rolling up their shirt sleeves” and working along side the individual, they will likely do so for the sake of the relational bond they believe may result.

Encouraging Leaders, more than any other leadership profile, may carry an intense level of internalized stress as they emote with the feelings and needs of the people within their life. The problems of others become, in a very real sense, their problems. They literally see themselves as carrying one another’s burdens. This level of emotional and spiritual involvement in the lives of others is not something that may be set aside when they mentally punch their time card at the end of the day. Such compartmentalization of life is likely to feel like an impossible dream to the Encouraging Leader who will often find themselves at people’s sides at all hours of the day or night. This attribute may, if allowed to negatively manifest itself, inspire the Encouraging Leader to worry on behalf of others. A more positive manifestation, however, would be to devote themselves to intercessory prayer. Encouraging Leaders can be outstanding prayer warriors any ministry is likely to have. In this regard, the Encouraging Leader may have much in common with Pastoral Leaders. A wise ministry will seek out Encouraging and Pastoral Leaders and charge them with the responsibility of leading and developing intercessory prayer teams.

It is important that Encouraging Leaders realize that they cannot support the team alone…they need their team members and the team members need the Encouraging Leader. 1 Corinthians 12 affirms that the Body of Christ is comprised of many different members who all need one another. The passage also affirms that God positions the members of the body, just as he has determined. God created the Encouraging Leader and positioned him or her strategically in this world, at this particular time, and within specific churches because God intends for them to nurture and support the weak and wounded who have yet to complete their ministry for the sake of Christ. With the support of the Encouraging Leader, the Kingdom of Christ will be propelled forward within a world that desperately needs to know the power and love of the God who himself sent us his Spirit to comfort and encourage God’s people as they seek to be faithful to his calling and direction within their lives.

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